1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for practicing sporting skills, specifically, those skills which require the ability to control a projectile with a club or stick, such as a golf club, hockey stick, tennis racket, baseball bat or lacrosse stick.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Practice devices for sports which require the use of sticks and projectiles utilizing hook and loop fastening means are generally known in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 3,601,406, issued to Aldo J. Giusti, on Aug. 24, 1971, discloses a golf practicing apparatus in which some portions of the target panel are constructed of a loop material which is capable of receiving the hook fastening material attached to the ball. The golf practicing apparatus is supported by hooks mounted on a wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,941,383, issued to William A. Clarke, on Mar. 2, 1976, reveals a projectile game comprising a hook fastening projectile and loop fastening target. The projectile is described as two wheel elements joined together at right angles to form a ball and having hook fastening material attached to the outer circumference of the wheel which is thrown at a target having a single face of loop fastening material. In the alternative a single wheel can be tossed, flying saucer style, at the target. The hook fastening material being attached to the circumference of each wheel element. The target is supported by hooks mounted on a wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,344,155, issued to Jung-Feng Huang, on Sep. 6, 1994, shows a hook and loop fastening ball and target device. A ball having hook fastening material covering the entire outer surface area of the ball is thrown against the target which has a single face of loop fastening material. The ball is thrown at a bulls eye pattern imprinted on the target. The target is hung from a frame which has a net to contain balls which are thrown and do not hit the target.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,358,742, issued to Irving Ziff on Oct. 25, 1994, discloses a hook and loop fastening ball and target game. The game is played by throwing a loop/pile covered ball at a target having a single face of hook fastening material. The target is supported by an angled frame which is designed for use on the ground or floated in the water.
Existing prior art relating to the use of hook and loop fastening materials are also described in foreign patent literature. Of particular note are the British patents 1,489,751 by Manfred Bock, Heinrich Weber and Giesela Weber, and 1,489,655 by Chan Kwok Leung which discloses various means of attaching a hook fastening material to the outer surface of a projectile ball for a ball game. The game is played by throwing the projectile ball at a target having patches of loop fastening material.
Practice devices for hockey which allow the athlete to practice his skills in controlling a hockey puck with a hockey stick also known in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,799, issue to Mukhtar S. Nandra on Nov. 10, 1992 reveals a hockey practice apparatus kit which utilizes a hockey puck affixed to a track to allow the athlete to practice his shot styles. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,055, issued to McCarthy et al. on Jun. 9, 1992 shows a hockey puck attached to a hockey stick via an elastic cord so as to enable an athlete to practice his puck handling and shooting skills.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe a hook and loop fastening practice device with a reversible target which enables an athlete to practice his shooting styles and accuracy as disclosed and claimed in the instant invention.